MMJ: The Basics

This may seem kind of random and simple, but here is my question: What is the best way to smoke pot? -New Bee

This is a great question. Stoners have argued and debated about the best way to smoke weed for decades. Each method has its pros and cons.

Bongs are great for giant lung-busting hits, although contrary to popular myth, the water doesn’t filter out many toxins. Bongs can be messy (spilled bong water is the worst) and a pain to keep clean.

Joints are a tad wasteful, although they are easy to use and they taste great! Some complain about the taste of the paper, but there are plenty of upscale rolling papers that burn clean and are virtually ash-free.

Pipes are probably the most convenient. A good hit from a clean pipe is my preferred method for fancy-pants weed tasting. My friend Michael Backes, author ofCannabis Pharmacy: The Practical Guide to Medical Marijuana, recommends a clean glass pipe as the most efficient way to smoke cannabis. He also says that you don’t have to hold your breath: One good inhale and exhale should give you exactly what you need. Really, there is no wrong way to smoke cannabis. It’s all good.

Let me get this straight: I can carry up to an ounce of weed anywhere in California. Anywhere. Is that correct? -Nat Geo

Yes, but: There are a few exceptions. You can’t carry cannabis on school grounds. No “open containers” of weed in your car. I am not quite sure if a plastic baggie counts as an “open container,” but I am sure there will be a court case about it sooner rather than later. It’s likely the police are going to want folks to carry little lockable stash bags like they do in Colorado. For now, I advise you to keep your weed in the trunk.

You also can’t possess weed on federal properties. Cannabis is still federally illegal, and I am sure new U.S. Attorney General Jeff “Good people don’t smoke marijuana” Sessions would like to keep it that way. You can’t carry weed with you in national parks or in casinos, although vapor pens are very discreet.

Speaking of vapes and concentrates: You can carry up to 8 grams of any sort of concentrated cannabis product, like wax or shatter. Eight grams of hash is enough to stop a party dead in its tracks, and possession of hash used to be a felony, so I’m all sure the dabheads are extremely happy.